CodeName K
by sgtat
Summary: When Jack is captured on an earthbased mission, SG1 must decide who to trust and get to the bottom of a complex conspiracy before it’s too late.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Code-Name K

Author: sgtat

Category: General, with some action and reference to such.

Rating: T for some violence and reference to such.

Season: Seven

Related Episodes/Spoilers: N/A, except some minor season seven context.

Featured Characters: Jack

Pairings: Team

Diclaimer: I have no ownership in the Stargate franchise. If I did, I would not be writing fan fiction.

Summary: When Jack is captured on an earth-based mission, SG-1 must decide who to trust and get to the bottom of a complex conspiracy before it's too late.

Katharine Wallace was unpacking groceries when she heard it; a slight creak in the hall floorboards. She paused only a split second before continuing her work, reaching into a bag for a jug of milk. Her outward calm revealed nothing as she opened her refrigerator door and deposited the milk inside. She opened the large drawer near the bottom of the fridge and removed a small object from within. She turned back to the groceries on the counter, raising the object she held when she took in the sight of a black figure a few feet away with a weapon pointed at her. She hit the deck as she fired her silenced handgun at the figure. The stranger also got a shot off, grazing her shoulder as she threw herself down. He was unconscious and on the floor himself before he could fire again.

Colonel Jack O'Neill woke up gradually, his mind dazed. He registered a pain in his ribcage and opened his eyes. His vision was blurry and he began noticing the tell-tale signs that he had been drugged. He repressed the urge to moan when the nausea and headache hit him at once. What the heck had he been given? He couldn't even recall being captured. His vision finally cleared and he found himself staring at a gray ceiling.

Some people just didn't have any imagination.

Jack winced as he forced himself to sit up. The room tilted momentarily but he soon had his equilibrium back enough to notice a black-clad figure, mask and all, observing him from the other side of a strong-looking set of prison bars. He was in a cell, but the style of the bars and the clothing of the figure suggested he was at least still on earth. He felt a twinge of irony as he stared at the black-clad figure before him. He noticed that while he retained his own black clothing, his jacket had been unzipped, his shirt un-tucked, his boots removed, and his mask was nowhere in sight. He was completely unarmed and had a feeling his locator beacon was no longer on him. His boots were sitting on the other side of the cell, the concealed knife having no doubt been discovered and removed. He had been knocked out so fast he didn't remember it and the search of his person had been thorough. She was good.

While Jack took in his situation, the black-clad figure watching him was making her own observations. The man before her was obviously no stranger to being drugged and imprisoned, and he was recovering quickly now that he was awake. He must be good. Not that she would have expected otherwise. They weren't stupid enough to send someone mediocre. Not after last time.

Jack twitched his nose as if it itched, raising his eyebrows at his guard. He was sitting upright on a low and uncomfortable bed, but at least it was something to sit on. He'd been in worse prisons. His guard did not react, and Jack knew she was evaluating him. His head pounded suddenly and Jack winced.

"Got aspirin?"

His guard got up and walked to a table at the side of the larger room that held his cell. Jack took a quick look around. His cell was in a large room with some random furniture. He labeled it as random because it did not belong in a prison. There were bookcases, cabinets and a desk, as well as a cot in the far corner of the room. Jack's brow furrowed as he took it all in. His guard returned and he quickly wiped his face of any expression. The guard set a canteen and a paper cup with two pills in it on the floor just outside the bars of his cell. Jack's surprise at his request being granted immediately turned to suspicion. What was in the canteen? And what was really in the pills? He scrutinized his guard, but she just stared back.

Finally he sighed and headed for the offerings.

"Careful," his guard said out of the blue. Jack looked at her questioningly. "The bars are electric. Don't touch them."

Jack blinked at her. Okay. That was weird. A serious, earth bad-guy holding him prisoner was protecting him from unnecessary pain? Jack reached carefully for the water and pills, one eye on his guard. She didn't move and he swallowed the pills reluctantly. Getting up had only aggravated his headache and reminded him of the ache in his ribs. If it wasn't aspirin, he figured there were ways she could get the drugs in his system without him voluntarily taking them. Jack rubbed his side and felt what had to be the outline of a small bandage. He glanced at the woman and his memory of recent events came flooding back. He had been shot, probably by the woman now guarding him. She'd apparently had a tranquilizer in the gun, which explained the drugged feeling, and the dart must have hit him in the ribcage.

"What do you want with me?"

Her question surprised Jack and he quirked his eyebrow at her. "Excuse me? That's my line. I'm the one behind bars, here."

Her reply was calm. "Only because I heard you in the hallway."

Jack sniffed, his suspicion that his current guard was in fact the target he had been trying to apprehend now confirmed. Heard him in the hallway, huh? He remembered that squeaky floorboard. The sounds of movement in the kitchen hadn't so much as paused and he'd continued forward, thinking she hadn't noticed the very, very quiet squeak. Oh yeah. She was very good.

"You got me there," he admitted with a charming smile. The black mask just stared back at him. He tried again. "Look, there's obviously been a misunderstanding. Maybe we can work things out."

"Not until you tell me I want to know." Her voice remained calm and emotionless.

Dang. She was going to play it tough. Typical NID. Well, Jack could play their game, too. He remained silent.

It took his guard over half an hour to tire of their stalemate. When she did, she simply removed her mask as though sick of wearing it, and went to her laptop. Jack took a good look at the woman. He had a feeling he was one of very few people alive ever to have seen her while knowing she was the NID agent code-named 'K'. She looked nice enough, but Jack knew better. He knew how lethal she could be.

"So, how are you, K?" He asked casually, eyes never leaving her face. The woman's eyes snapped to his and her hands stilled at the computer. Gotcha.

Katharine briefly considered continuing to type as though nothing had happened, but what good would it do to pretend? He was smirking at her slip. She couldn't believe she'd fallen for such an obvious tactic, but his knowledge of her code name had honestly surprised her. They weren't in the habit of telling their assassins such information. Still, she should have ignored him. She was even rustier than she'd thought, and the idea concerned her. Katharine revealed nothing of her feelings, however, guarding her features carefully. At least her skills as an actress were standing her in good stead. She regarded the man across the room. He was clever, but it didn't really matter. No need to let him gloat. Katharine allowed her face to form a slow, smug smile before turning back to her computer. She knew the smile would disconcert him, though he was careful not to react. She smiled again genuinely as she went back to work, watching him out of the corner of her eye.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Code-Name K

Author: sgtat

Category: General, with some action and reference to such.

Rating: T for some violence and reference to such.

Season: Seven

Related Episodes/Spoilers: N/A, except some minor season seven context.

Featured Characters: Jack

Pairings: Team

Diclaimer: I have no ownership in the Stargate franchise. If I did, I would not be writing fan fiction.

Summary: When Jack is captured on an earth-based mission, SG-1 must decide who to trust and get to the bottom of a complex conspiracy before it's too late.

_Katharine allowed her face to form a slow, smug smile before turning back to her computer. She knew the smile would disconcert him, though he was careful not to react. She smiled again genuinely as she went back to work, watching him out of the corner of her eye._

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Major Samantha Carter strode into General Hammond's office, knocking on the open door.

"Come in, Major," the General beckoned.

"Sir. Any news from Colonel O'Neill?" Sam stood in front of the General's desk trying to hide her anxiety. She knew the General would have informed SG-1 if he had heard anything, but she also knew that, the nature of the Colonel's assignment being what it was, no news was bad news. She had to ask.

The General just shook his head. "Not yet. We sent a squad to the house, but they have yet to report back, other than to say that it was empty."

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Katharine rested her head against her palm, the lateness of the hour finally getting to her. The man was impossible to find in her search of the open NID database. He must be high-level, and she was not a computer hacker. She'd have to try to find him elsewhere. She glanced at the man in the cell. He was asleep on the bed, probably still feeling the effects of the hefty dose of tranquilizer she'd shot him with. Katharine stood and approached a cupboard against one of the walls. She pulled out a small package and closed the door.

She felt eyes on her.

Years of honing one's senses tended to stick with a person. She leaned her forehead against the cupboard, eyes closed as if exhausted, twisting her head to the side as though stretching her neck. When she opened her eyes again, she was looking directly at her prisoner. He was awake, and watching her. He closed his eyes, but not quite fast enough.

Katharine pulled the cupboard open again and grabbed another package. She tossed it in the direction of the prisoner.

Jack knew he'd been found out so he sat up to see what she had tossed at him. A standard issue MRE, probably bought at the nearest Army surplus store. Way better food than he was used to getting in prison situations. Jack watched the woman for a moment as she nibbled on the preserved bread in her meal, eyes intent on the computer, but probably able to see him just fine. He couldn't help but feel that something was off. He tried to ignore it. The woman obviously had a good deal of training, much of it probably very similar to his own. For the first time in his prison experience, he'd likely found his match. Might as well start dancing.

Jack took a deep breath and started in. "You used to be a top-secret government agent, code-named K. Your real name doesn't appear on any government records."

Katharine continued working and eating as if she hadn't heard him.

"You worked with an elite intelligence force known as the Black Angels. There are never more than one hundred agents in this force at any given time, and you were one of a handful of civilians." Jack paused. "You were an assassin."

Katharine did not react.

Jack watched her carefully. If she was surprised by any of his knowledge she was hiding it well. He pushed on.

"You worked with this group for a little over three years. Two years ago you disappeared. Your entire team was found dead on assignment – "

"Stop."

Jack was actually surprised. "Excuse me?"

Katharine slowly shifted her gaze to Jack, her face carefully expressionless, her voice devoid of passion. And that's exactly what made her response weird. "That's enough. I didn't let you live so you could recite my service record. Eat your dinner." Katharine shut down her computer and turned her back on Jack. She sat on the edge of the cot, removing her boots and jacket. She slipped under the covers in her black shirt and cargo pants and turned off a light switch on the wall. The room was enveloped in darkness.

"Hey!" Jack called out. "I didn't get to eat my dinner!" There was no response and Jack gave it up. His headache was returning and he was feeling drowsy again; the best course of action probably involved lying down and getting some sleep. Obviously he had gotten quite the dose of tranquilizer. At least the aspirin had really been aspirin.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Code-Named K Author: sgtat Category: General, with some action and reference to such.  
Rating: T for some violence and reference to such.  
Season: Seven Related Episodes/Spoilers: N/A, except some minor season seven context.  
Featured Characters: Jack Pairings: Team Disclaimer: I have no ownership in the Stargate franchise. If I did, I would not be writing fan fiction. ;)

Summary: When Jack is captured on an earth-based mission, SG-1 must decide who to trust and get to the bottom of a complex conspiracy before it's too late.

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"Hey Sam," Dr. Daniel Jackson, archeologist and linguist, stood in the doorway of Sam's lab. He'd stood there silent for a moment, watching her work on a project, observing the tense set of her shoulders, the almost defiant concentration she was giving to the task at hand. She jumped when he spoke.

"Daniel?" Her voice was tight but even.

Daniel knew she wanted news and he had come to deliver it. "We heard back from the team at the house. They found Jack's locator beacon there, broken. No trace of where he might be."

Sam's eyes slipped from his to stare at the floor. She nodded silently.

"Teal'c still unconscious," Daniel continued, "but, Dr. Fraiser thinks he'll make a full recovery...if he wakes up."

"He will," Sam returned, looking up again with determination. "And if the search of the house turned up nothing useful, we should go talk to General Hammond. We should be on this investigation."

Daniel smiled. "Already done. Briefing's in an hour."

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A loud, obnoxious beeping noise pulled Jack from sleep. He groaned quietly and reached out to turn off the alarm clock. He came up with air and frowned, opening his eyes. Oh, yeah. Grey ceiling and bars. And across the room 'code-name K' sat up in her bed and turned off her alarm clock. She turned on the lights and glanced over at him. Jack scowled.

"What time is it?"

"0600."

"Oy." Jack rested his head back against the pillow.

Katharine pulled on her boots and jacket, brushing her hair quickly before retrieving her half-eaten MRE from the night before. Jack realized his was still sitting just outside his cell. Katharine pulled up a chair and began eating.

"So," she said conversationally, "do you want to tell me who you are? You know; name, rank and serial number?"

Jack raised an eyebrow.

The woman munched on her food, acting for all the world as if they were two friends meeting at a cafe to catch up on old times.

"I don't think so," Jack said, reaching for his own unopened MRE from the night before. He glanced at the package. Shrimp Jambalaya.

"You want a different one?" Katharine asked, noticing his grimace.

"No thanks."

Katharine shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Jack opened his package and dumped the contents on the floor. He found a bag of skittles and tossed it onto his bed for later. Opening the canteen 'K' had given him the day before, he poured a little water into the now-empty package, placing the shrimp Jambalaya packet inside and leaning the whole apparatus against his bed while he waited for it to heat up.

"Amazing what a little mercury and water will do, isn't it?" Katharine asked.

"Amazing," Jack parroted irritably.

"So what were you doing in my house, anyway?" Katharine opened a packet of oatmeal cookies and nibbled on one of them.

"I ran out of sugar. Thought I'd come borrow some."

Katharine allowed a stiff smile. She stuffed her partially eaten cookie back into the package and got up, returning to her spot in front of the computer. "You know, even prisoners of war are allowed to give name, rank and serial number. It's actually expected."

"Yeah," Jack saw steam rising from his main course and gingerly discarded the outer packaging, opening the food and digging in with a disposable spoon. "Never quite got that, myself."

"So you must be some sort of special ops," Katharine deducted. "I'm guessing you're a field agent by your age and apparent experience." Jack raised his eyebrows and dug into his meal. But it didn't matter how he reacted. Katharine was already busy searching for him again on her laptop.

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Agent Barrett took a sip of his Dunkin Donuts coffee while he waited. It was a bright morning, not at all in tune with current top-secret events. He saw Dr. Jackson and Major Carter approaching and went to meet them at the street corner. The two members of SG-1 shook his hand and smiled briefly, a sign of their gratitude for the intelligence he had so recently passed on to them. Ironic that it was because of that intelligence that Colonel O'Neill was now missing.

"How's Murray?" Barrett asked, using the name they had agreed upon for referring to Teal'c in public.

"The same," was Major Carter's terse reply. Barrett hadn't worked with her often, but he knew tension when he saw it. She had to be worried about Teal'c and O'Neill. She was an incredible woman, he thought idly. Smart, beautiful and dangerous, with an emotional depth he suspected existed below her ever strong exterior. She was exactly his type. One of these days maybe he'd get up the nerve to ask her out. Some time when her teammates weren't missing or injured, but also not around to run him off for having the audacity to ask their Major out on a date.

"What can you tell us about Jack?" Dr. Jackson cut straight to the point.

"Not much, I'm afraid," Barrett said, pulling his focus back to the reason they were there. "We know he made it inside the house without incident, we know he encountered K, we know shots were fired. A few minutes later his locator beacon and wire were taken out of commission. By the time the squad got there, there was no sign of either of them. A little blood on the floor, but the DNA test confirmed that it was not Colonel O'Neill's."

"Then she didn't kill him," Major Carter surmised.

"Not that we can tell."

Dr. Jackson frowned. "I wonder why. I mean, from what you've told us she's pretty ruthless. She killed her entire espionage team, she almost took out Teal'c when he went topside the other day and she's good enough to have out-maneuvered Jack somehow. Why wouldn't she just kill him and disappear again?"

Barrett shrugged, but Jackson wasn't paying attention.

"We must be missing something. Something about her."

"Dr. Jackson," Barrett broke in, "there could be a number of reasons that she didn't kill Colonel O'Neill. Keeping him alive doesn't mean anything."

"I know, I know." Dr. Jackson's brow was fully furrowed now. "But we have to be missing something." 


	4. Chapter 4

Katharine smiled and leaned back from her computer. Colonel Jack O'Neill, USAF. Current duty: Deep Space Radar Telemetry at Cheyenne Mountain. Access: Top-Secret. The internet was a wonderful thing. 

Top-Secret Deep Space Radar Telemetry, huh? What a lousy cover for an assassin.

It was an odd thing that this Air Force Colonel had been sent after her. They had never used military personnel before.

Katharine's smile faded and she looked over at the Colonel. Jack was munching on his Skittles, looking bored.

"Well, I found you, sir." That got his attention and he sat up a little straighter.

"Oh?"

"Colonel Jack O'Neill."

Jack paused in his chewing. "That's all you found?"

"No."

Jack gave a non-committal grunt and played disinterested. Did she know he was with the Stargate program, on SG-1 with Teal'c? He could be in big trouble if she did. The image of Teal'c laid out on the pavement of the SGC parking lot, blood pouring from his chest where he'd been shot by a sniper, rushed back to Jack with the force of a semi. A sniper code-named K.

Katharine noticed that Jack was crushing what remained in his bag of Skittles.

"Are you alright?"

Jack glared at the woman. "Fine," he said shortly, before turning his back on her and laying down on his uncomfortable bed.

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Sam closed the refrigerator door, thoughtful. Hiding a handgun in the fridge was a smart move. So was hiding one in the couch cushion, the night stand, and the bathroom cabinet. Of course, none of the weapons had been left in their hiding places, but the holders were all there, and Sam had no doubt that each had contained a handgun before K left the house with Colonel O'Neill. Sam wondered if Daniel and Agent Barrett would find any empty weapon holders in the front and back yards. This K was certainly prepared . . . or paranoid.

"Major Carter?"

Agent Barrett stood in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Dr. Jackson found something out back."

Sam followed Barrett wordlessly. Daniel was bent on hands and knees next to the house. Sam knelt down beside him.

"That's how she got out?"

Agent Barrett nodded. "Has to be."

In the crawlspace under the house, there was a trap door leading down into the ground. Trust an archeologist to find a perfectly hidden tunnel.

Jack had remained silent for hours, despite his captor's attempts at conversation and questioning. K gave up after a while, fiddling around on her computer, checking out some doohickeys that reminded Jack forcibly of spy movies, and organizing weapons and ammunition. Jack sighed as he watched her put together a Glock she'd just inspected. Remaining silent just wasn't very satisfying when he wasn't being tortured or at least questioned, and he needed to learn from her as much as she wanted to learn from him. He pushed the image of Teal'c to the back of his mind. Time for another dance. Perhaps a waltz.

First the invitation. "So what did you hit me with, anyway? That was some powerful stuff."

K smiled a little and put the Glock to the side, accepting the invitation. "A mixture of sedatives and tranquilizer, at a very high dose. Relatively safe, with instant effects."

"Why didn't you just kill me?" And the dance began.

K gave him an indiscernible look. "I know it's NID practice to kill first and not bother asking questions later, but I never take someone out without knowing why."

Jack raised his eyebrows and wandered over to the end of his cell. "Really? Never?"

K looked him square in the eyes. "Not if I can help it."

"So, how many times could you not help it?"

"Two."

"Hmmm." Time for a few spins. "So, 'kill first and not bother asking questions later'? That's a pretty negative outlook on your employers."

"The NID was never my employer. What? Did they tell you I was some rogue agent of theirs that needed taking care of? Besides, it's not an outlook, it's a fact. It's part of why I left the business."

Her claim never to have worked for the NID threw him, but Jack was recovered by the time she finished. "Only part?" He drawled as dryly as he could.

Katharine gave the Air Force Colonel a sharp look. Just what was he fishing for? "Yes. Only part."

"Who was the second?"

Katharine smiled at his sudden changes in direction. He was trying to throw her off balance and get her to reveal too much. "I don't know his name. He was the man they sent to kill me last time."

Jack raised his eyebrows. The waltz had just gone from smooth to jerky. "Last time?"

"You're the second assassin they've sent after me. The first one was number two."

Jack sniffed. "No tranquilizer-sedative martini for him?"

Katharine gave a wry smile. "Didn't have the option at the time."

Jack nodded. Something was definitely off and the waltz wasn't smoothing out again. Time to try a tango. "So what were the circumstances of your last target?"

Katharine frowned. Her last... "Why?"

Jack shrugged nonchalantly. "Just curious."

He watched as K hesitated, a frown marring her features. For a moment, he thought she was going to answer. But then she tangoed back.

"Why don't you tell me about your last target, Colonel? Why were you sent to assassinate me?"

Jack grinned internally. "I wasn't."

Katharine stared. What the...? What was the man playing at? "You sneaked into my house with a lethal weapon and you try to tell me you had no intent to kill?"

Jack looked her square in the eyes. "Not if I could help it," he threw her words back at her. She was a wonderful tango partner.

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Sam didn't know how long she'd been crawling through the tunnel, obviously hand-dug by K. It was actually a pretty impressive structure, not just in terms of how long it must have taken her to dig it out, but also how stable it was. If only it was a little bigger, maybe Sam wouldn't be fighting claustrophobia now. She wasn't sure if she was impressed at the woman for digging this escape route from her home, or disturbed by the level of paranoia it connoted. The tunnel started to slope upwards and Sam hoped she'd be out of there soon. She looked at her watch with a flashlight. Great. She'd been crawling under the ground for a good hour.

Sam turned as far onto her side as she could in the tiny space and reached for her radio. "Daniel?"

Daniel's voice came crackling back to her. "You doing alright, Sam?"

"Yeah, fine. I think I'm nearing the exit. Stand by."

Sam continued crawling forward, practically flat on her stomach. Great way to practice that military low-crawl, she thought to herself. Another fifteen minutes went by and she reached the end. She pulled out a Zat and pushed the trapdoor open an inch. She blinked at the dim evening sunlight and opened the door fully. Sam breathed in the fresh air and pulled herself out of the tunnel. She was in a ditch between a road and a parking lot, relatively well-hidden from view.

Sam looked around in discouragement. K must have kept a car here. She and the Colonel could be anywhere by now.

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Teal'c pried his eyes open abruptly. He could hear the steady beeping of a cardiogram nearby and registered the gray ceiling of the SGC infirmary without any surprise. He had, after all, been shot. He reached up to lightly touch the bandage where the bullet had entered near his heart.

"Teal'c!"

Teal'c turned his head to see Dr. Daniel Jackson perched on a neighboring bed, a book open in his hands. "Daniel Jackson."

Daniel slid off the bed and discarded his book. "How are you feeling?"

Teal'c considered the question. He felt weak and tired, and he was in a considerable amount of pain. But lacking a symbiote, as he now did, he knew he must be lucky to be alive. "I am well."

Daniel grinned. "I'll get Dr. Fraiser."

"Daniel Jackson." Teal'c stopped him before he could leave. He had to tell the archeologist what he knew. "I saw my attacker before he fired."

Daniel turned back to reassure the Jaffa. "It's alright, Teal'c. We've already found out who - " Daniel stumbled to a halt. "Did you say 'he'?"


	5. Chapter 5

Katharine had had just about enough. The conversation had started interesting enough, but had led practically no where. She was wasting time.

"Alright, Colonel, no more playing. Why did they send you after me?"

The Colonel tilted his head. It seemed his partner no longer wanted to dance. "They?"

"Yes, they. The NID. Who else would want me dead?"

"The NID?"

"Don't play ignorant, Colonel, it won't work. Now answer my question."

Jack eyed his captor warily. She'd claimed she'd never worked for the NID and now she said they were trying to kill her. And apparently already had tried, since she'd said 'number two' had been sent by 'them'. But the intelligence had been quite clear; she was an NID operative, and one the nefarious organization didn't want to lose. Agent Barrett had taken a big risk finding out who had attempted to kill Teal'c and where she lived, not to mention passing that information on to the SGC. And yet... Something still wasn't sitting right with Jack. Could Barrett have misled them? Jack dismissed the thought quickly. He'd learned to trust Barrett in much the same way he'd trusted Martouf - they were both the only members of their organizations he didn't despise. And Jacob, of course, but that was different.

"Colonel?"

Jack brought his eyes back up from the ground at his feet, where they had wandered as he thought things through. He studied the woman before him, trying to see her with a different perspective. What if she wasn't the one who had tried to kill Teal'c? What if Barrett had made a mistake...or been fed misinformation.

Jack's face hardened. It wouldn't surprise him. He drew in a deep breath. "The NID didn't send me after you. The Air Force did. I was supposed to bring you in for questioning. But I'm not gonna tell you why until you explain how every single member of your team was found dead while you alone survived and went immediately into hiding."

Jack nodded mentally to himself. That incident had gone a long way to convince him that Barrett's information was correct. He knew he'd chosen the right subject when K flinched visibly.

Katharine struggled to keep her expression steady. At that particular moment she hated Jack O'Neill. Her first impulse was to bite his head off. But a few deep breaths later she reconsidered. The Colonel's eyes were guarded, as if he was expecting to learn something. She had been surprised when he actually answered her question. It seemed he was willing to exchange a little information now. Katharine tried to figure out what in their recent conversation could have effected this change and came up empty. Unless...

Katharine re-analyzed everything that had happened thus far. When she'd turned from her fridge to defend herself he had already been there, weapon raised. He'd had time to fire and had not done so; he'd only fired when she had. Perhaps he was telling the truth about not wanting to assassinate her if he could help it. He also didn't display the arrogance Katharine had come to associate with NID operatives, so his claim not to work for them could be valid, especially since he was a USAF officer. As for wanting to know about her botched last assignment, what could he possibly hope to learn that wasn't in her report? Unless he'd never read it.

Katharine hesitated. She knew if she dredged that mission back up she'd have a lot of memories to deal with. Memories she mostly avoided. But what if she'd jumped to the wrong conclusions about the Colonel? What if he honestly didn't know what had happened? Katharine steeled herself for the emotional wringer she was about to put herself through and glared at the Colonel. She talked quickly and without emotion.

"I worked on a five-member team for the last several months of my tenure with the Black Angels. I was the assassin, and we also had a civilian explosives expert. There was also an Air Force field intelligence officer - a Major. The other two members were NID agents."

Katharine paused as their faces invaded her thoughts. Yeah, she was definitely going to have nightmares tonight.

"Our last target was an Iranian military officer. We were given some preliminary information and sent out to find him. It took us almost a month to track him down. Then I followed him everywhere for days while the others assessed the situation. We met up again on our fourth night there, all except the Air Force Major. The target had gone home for the night and it was the perfect opportunity to take him out; the other nights he had spent at his military base.

"I was getting ready to go in while Je- while our explosives expert prepared a distraction. The Air Force Major came back then and said we had to scrub the mission - it was a set up. I don't know how he found that out, but he obviously didn't get the whole story before coming back to warn us.

"The NID agents urged us to go ahead with the mission. They said even if it was a set-up and we all got killed, at least this threat would be gone. But something felt off about their insistence. I asked the Major what he knew. He said some American agent was taking secret orders from someone. The Iranian wasn't a threat to our country at all - he was actually planning to defect to us. That's when one of the NID agents slit the Major's throat."

Jack looked hard at his captor. Somewhere during her explanation she'd slipped into an at ease position and was staring into space. Her expression was carefully blank, her eyes emotionless. Jack recognized the look; he'd seen it on his colleagues in special forces when they were relating events they'd rather forget. He suspected he'd looked like that a few times himself. He didn't think she was lying.

"What happened?"

K gritted her teeth but otherwise didn't react to his interjection.

"I went for my weapon but the other agent and our explosives expert pulled their guns on me. They were going to force me to kill the Iranian."

She paused.

"Anyway, I got away and took the three of them out while they were looking for me. I got myself back home, filed my report with the Black Angels and quit. The NID wasn't happy about my actions and accused me of being the traitor. Then they sent number two to kill me. I guess they thought I was a risk because I knew about the presence of a double agent in their midst. I don't think they ever settled who it was. I also don't think they tried very hard. That's why I'm always prepared for them to send someone else after me. Like you. As far as they're concerned I should have killed the Iranian and kept my mouth shut."

"And that's the last time you were sent to assassinate someone?"

"Yes, sir."

Jack noted the military-like response and remained silent for a while, taking in everything she'd just told him. According to NID records, she had been the traitor on that mission. They'd recalled her to take out Teal'c because they knew she was good enough to shoot someone under the nose of an entire Air Force base. They'd neglected to make note of her old report. Unless, of course, she was lying. After all, the Air Force hadn't told him anything about a report. But other than the NID evidence and the fact that he was a prisoner, she'd given him no reason to distrust her. She hadn't killed him, she'd bandaged him, she'd fed him, she'd treated him well, she'd finally answered his questions, she'd refrained from torturing him in any way, and he had no doubt she'd been sincere in her disapproval of the NID's policies. She'd even suspected him of being sent by the NID, not an assumption indicative of someone who'd been taking their orders to kill Teal'c just a couple of days ago. So who had tried to kill Teal'c?

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General Hammond frowned. "Are you sure?"

Teal'c nodded weakly from his hospital bed. "I am certain, General Hammond. The person who attempted to kill me was male. I only regret I cannot identify him precisely, as I was shot immediately. But I know he had dark brown hair and was relatively young."

Daniel looked anxiously at the General. Hammond was aghast. "Are you saying we sent Colonel O'Neill after the wrong person?"

Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "If you sent Colonel O'Neill to apprehend a woman, then yes."

Daniel fidgeted. "General, we need to tell Sam."

Hammond gave a curt nod and Daniel left to make the phone call.

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"Okay. Thanks Daniel. We'll be careful." Sam shut her cell phone and returned to the cafe table where she had left Agent Barrett.

Barrett glanced up when she sat down. "Everything alright?"

Sam looked at him. She'd told Daniel they'd be careful, so perhaps she should start by being careful herself. As much as she trusted the man in front of her, caution seemed to be the order of the day after what Daniel had just told her. They had been set up, after all. "Barrett, how did you find out about K?"

Barrett shot her a quizzical look but Sam refused to react. "Why?" he asked.

"Just tell me."

Barrett raised his eyebrows but went ahead and answered. "I accessed the NID database and found her as the agent listed for the assassination. I only wish I'd done a random check on the system before the assignment. I might have been able to prevent the whole thing."

Sam tilted her head as something in what he said clicked. "You do random checks of the system?"

Barrett shifted. He probably shouldn't have told her that. But this was Major Samantha Carter, after all, the one who had taught him what trusting one's colleagues meant. "Yes. I occasionally do random searches for any mention of the Stargate program listed in the database so I can keep tabs on what the NID is up to with regards to the program. It's been useful in the past."

"Sounds risky," Sam observed, growing concerned.

Barrett shrugged. "I've never been caught."

"Are you sure?"

Barrett frowned at the woman sitting across from him. "What's happened?"

"T- Murray woke up."

Barrett was confused. "I'm glad to hear that." He looked at Major Carter expectantly.

Sam hesitated briefly, but decided to keep going. This was Barrett, after all, and when it came right down to it, she trusted him. "He saw the man who shot him."

Barrett raised his eyebrows. "The 'man'?"

Sam nodded.

"That's impossible," Barrett argued.

"Is it?" Sam interrupted.

Barrett narrowed his eyes at the Major, who had begun to look around subtly. There was no way he'd been caught - he would know. He wouldn't be sitting here right now. Sam interrupted his thoughts with a tense, "Let's get out of here."

Barrett studied her for a moment. She was serious. He nodded and they left the cafe, eyes casually taking in everything, occasionally glancing over their shoulders.

The man sitting at a table near theirs cunningly refrained from following them. Instead he spoke two words into his hidden lapel mic. "They know."


	6. Chapter 6

Jack was roused from his slumber by a disconcerting noise. He scrubbed a hand over his face and looked across the room toward K's bed, where the woman in question had just turned on a bedside lamp. Her head was in her hands and she was breathing rapidly and deeply. Jack sat up a little and squinted at her. Her T-shirt was damp with sweat. Apparently his big bad supposed NID assassin had had a rather nasty nightmare. No surprises there, given the story she'd told him earlier that day, but it actually kind of relieved Jack to see her in this state - she obviously hadn't been faking earlier. 

"You okay?" He asked softly. She stiffened visibly but otherwise didn't respond.

"Dumb question," he muttered to himself. He remained silent as he watched her get her breathing under control and pull herself together.

She sat quietly on her bed for a while, then reached under her pillow and took out a handgun. She walked purposefully towards him.

Jack sat up in alarm. "Whatcha doin'?"

K flicked the safety off the gun. "Getting my life back."

"How?" Jack asked, more than a little worried as she stopped right in front of his cell.

K took aim not ten feet away from him. "You."

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Daniel shoved the briefing room door open with his shoulder, trying not to spill the coffee in his hand.

"Good morning," he greeted General Hammond and Colonel Reynolds' SG team before sitting down.

General Hammond started the briefing without ado. "Thank you for joining us, Dr. Jackson, on such short notice. I have some news regarding Colonel O'Neill."

The atmosphere in the room changed immediately. Backs straightened, pencils stilled, eyes locked on him.

Colonel Reynolds was the first to recover his voice. "What's the news, General?"

"About half an hour ago, the Air Force received a call from a woman claiming to K. She said she had Colonel O'Neill in custody, and that if we want to see him alive again, we should meet her demands."

Daniel chose this moment to jump in. "What are her demands?"

General Hammond shook his head. "We don't know yet. That's all she said, then she hung up. We're waiting for another call. In the mean time, Colonel Reynolds, you and your team will be running point on this operation. You will be coordinating with local authorities to apprehend this K person and retrieve Colonel O'Neill."

Reynolds nodded but Daniel raised his hand a bit to forestall the impending close of the briefing. "Um, wait a minute - I thought we decided that K wasn't the one who tried to kill Teal'c. In which case, the whole thing was a set up to get us to go after her to begin with - won't we be playing right into their hands if we go after her now?"

"Jackson," Reynolds put in, "even if she didn't take a shot at Teal'c, which we can't be sure of given his condition, the very fact that she's holding O'Neill hostage doesn't say much about her character."

Daniel was already shaking his head. "No, think about it. The attempt to kill Teal'c was both an assassination attempt and a set up. We sent Jack over to her house to apprehend her. She didn't kill him - she took him. She's using Jack as a bargaining tool."

"Alright people," General Hammond said before Reynolds could open his mouth again. "The fact of the matter is that she is holding Colonel O'Neill hostage, whatever the reasons," he added quickly as Daniel prepared to argue once more. "We have to get him back. Colonel Reynolds, you have your orders."

"Yes sir." Reynolds and his men stood and left the briefing room, leaving a stewing Daniel behind.

"General," he began, but Hammond cut him off.

"I know, son. I agree with you. Which is why I called you to this briefing."

Daniel blinked in surprise. "Oh."

Hammond leaned forward. "I'm having you kept apprised of any changes in the situation. In the meantime, you have my full authority to do whatever you need to do to find out more about this K person and her connection to the NID."

Daniel frowned. "What about Sam?"

"She and Agent Barrett are investigating a lead of their own."

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Sam pulled up to the curb and waited for Barrett. She checked her watch and confirmed that he should show up within the next few minutes. Barrett had gone to NID headquarters a few hours ago to check her hypothesis that someone was onto him. Apparently, he could only confirm or disprove her suspicions from his own computer at the NID. Sam didn't like the idea but he had argued that they had to know who was behind this, and she knew he was right.

She saw Barrett approaching and got out of her car to meet him before heading into the coffee shop. The honest NID agent smiled when he saw her. A second later, he jerked back and fell to the ground.

Sam yanked her car door open and took cover behind it, eyes searching in the direction the nearly silent shot had come from while her hands groped under the driver's seat for her Baretta. Another muted shot rang out and shattered the window right above her head. She felt the flying debris cut her arms and scalp, but nothing felt too serious. The startled exclamations from nearby civilians caught her attention.

They were standing where they had stopped when Agent Barrett fell, and at the second shot they were over their shock and getting a panicked look on their faces.

"Down, get down!" Sam yelled at them with her seldom-used command voice. It did the trick and the civilians in the vicinity all ducked behind fire hydrants or pressed themselves to the sidewalk as another shot nicked Sam's car mere inches from her head.

"Dammit," she hissed as she tried to find the origin of the bullets. In a highly populated area she didn't want to risk random firing with a handgun. She would hold her fire until she could see the attacker.

"Somebody call 911!" She shouted, this time not removing her eyes from the tall office building she suspected the fire was coming from.

Sure enough, just after she had given the instruction, she caught sight of movement in a window near the top floor. She ducked as far as she could behind her car door without obstructing her view, and caught sight of the sun reflecting off of metal. Another shot rang out and she saw the flash of fire and smoke as she ducked. This time she actually felt the bullet whiz past her head before striking the ground behind her. Damn, this guy was good. She rose a bit and fired back, aiming high. She couldn't risk actually shooting at the building - aim with a handgun at that distance was not true and if her bullet went through the wrong office window and struck a civilian . . . but she did want to let the sharpshooter know she had made his location. She took a second shot to warn him off.

She could hear several people nearby now talking to 911 operators, and she motioned the nearest to toss her their phone, which they did with no hesitation. Being in possession of a weapon in public had its perks.

Sam briefly filled the operator in on their situation and was patched through to the approaching police, advising that they use extreme caution as they surrounded and searched the building she directed their attention to. She kept an eye out for further movement at the window, but no more shots came. Apparently the shooter had gotten her message and beat a strategic withdrawal, aware that the police would be coming soon and likely converging on his now known location. As much as Sam wished she could have kept him busy until the police had the building surrounded, she couldn't risk the lives of the civilians around her. She only hoped they could track the shooter down.

Sam became aware of movement to her left and jerked her head around to see a civilian, obviously assuming the new calm meant it was all over, getting to his feet.

"Stay down!" She ordered sharply. The man started, took one look at her and meekly obeyed.

Sam glanced around at the others. Lying on the ground, a few of them were starting to cry or hyperventilate. She addressed them all loudly and calmly.

"You're going to be okay. The shooting has stopped. But I want everyone to stay down on the ground until the police have cleared the area, okay?"

This had the desired effect on most of the civilians, who nodded in agreement and seemed marginally calmer.

Sam took a moment to glance over her shoulder at Agent Barrett. He hadn't moved through the entire incident and she knew he was dead.


	7. Chapter 7

Sam heard the police cars coming and watched as the officers surrounded and entered the office building the shooter had been in. Hopefully they were fast enough to catch him before he got out, but Sam doubted it. She knew an ambulance was on the way as well, but they were probably waiting until the area was secured by the police before getting too close. A police car approached their area and Sam grimaced. She knew she'd have to answer a lot of questions that would just take her time away from finding Colonel O'Neill.

A rasping cough caught her attention and she turned around to see who was having trouble. Her jaw dropped when she saw Agent Barrett coughing and clutching his chest.

"Barrett!" She called, unwilling to break cover just yet. "Are you alright?"

Malcolm gave her a thumbs up and caught his breath. Sam noted that the police at the building seemed to have everything under control and made her way cautiously toward him.

"Where are you hit?" She asked.

Barrett gave her a weak smile. "Right in the vest."

Sam stopped. "You're wearing a bullet-proof vest?" Barrett just nodded and Sam flushed with relief and anger. "Damn it, Barrett. I thought you were dead."

"Sorry to disappoint you," he grinned.

Sam had to smile as she shook her head. "When did you put on the vest?"

Barrett grimaced. "At HQ. You were right. They were tracking my computer logs. I figured they could decide to take me out at anytime, so I grabbed a vest and put it on before I left. Still hurt, though."

"You were unconscious for a while there," Sam frowned.

Barrett nodded. "Hit my head when I hit the ground. That shot really threw me backwards."

Sam nodded. "I noticed. You going to be okay?"

Barrett nodded again and Sam helped him sit up.

"Are you okay?" the agent asked, noticing the small cuts Sam had sustained.

"Yeah. Just some scratches."

"Major Carter?"

Sam looked up to see that a few policemen had arrived. "I'm Major Carter," she confirmed. "This is Agent Barrett, NID. He was the primary target of the attack."

The nearest policeman nodded. "Yes ma'am. You weapon, ma'am?"

Sam handed over her weapon and, anticipating the officer's next question, pulled out her Air Force ID. Barrett followed suit with his NID identification card, and the recounting of events began.

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Daniel blew out his breath in frustration. His search of NID records had pulled up exactly the information Agent Barrett had given them about K. But Daniel wasn't buying it anymore. He wasn't going to take anything for granted, and certain not something that had come from the NID. But where could he find more information? He'd already tried accessing the records of the Black Angels' Organization, but he didn't have clearance for that. General Hammond was working on getting it for him, but he knew he might not have enough time.

He read through the NID's report of K's last mission again. It said that K's team had been found dead on assignment. The two other NID agents and the civilian explosives expert had each been killed by a single bullet, and the Air Force Major's throat was slit.

Daniel leaned back. Pretty gruesome. If the report was accurate, then Jack was in the hands of an obviously ruthless killer. If not, somebody at the NID was going to a lot of trouble to make K out to be a villain.

Daniel frowned at the computer screen. An Air Force officer had been killed. Maybe there was a corresponding record filed by the Air Force about the event. If there was, any discrepancies between the two reports could be telling.

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Jack came to with another throbbing headache. He noticed that this time, he was sitting upright, tied to a chair. He brought his head up cautiously, ignoring the rather large crick in his neck, and looked around.

"Guess we're not in Kansas anymore," he murmured.

It seemed that K had chosen to move to a new location. This time the room was much smaller, though still plain gray concrete, with no room for a cell. There was just a simple table and chairs and some sort of storage cabinet. On the table were several electronic devices and K's laptop. K herself was no where to be seen.

Jack took stock of his situation. He was bound expertly, no doubt about it. A little experimenting proved he could move his chair around if he was careful not to tip it over – even his ankles had been tied together. When he reached the table he was disappointed to find nothing sharp. He scooted over to the cabinet but it was locked shut.

Jack scowled. Just when he was starting to get along with his captor, she had to go and make everything unpleasant again.

He still believed her story, but he was wondering what the heck she was up to now. Besides that, he could really do with an aspirin and some breakfast.

Just then the door at the far end of the room opened and in walked K. She acknowledged his conscious state with a nod but otherwise ignored him as she sat down at her laptop.

Jack sniffed in annoyance. "So . . . watchya doin'?"

K glanced at him, then back at her computer screen. "Making arrangements for your release and my exoneration."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "That sounds good. And . . . ambitious."

K gave him a look and Jack could tell she was in a bad mood.

"So what's the plan?" he asked more seriously.

"The plan is that you stay here as bait while I go fine the people who keep setting me up," she retorted.

"Excuse me?" Jack asked. "Bait?" He didn't like the sound of that.

"That's right," K answered. "I'll lead the Air Force to you here, and hopefully whoever's after me will also show up in the hopes of catching or killing me."

"And what will you do?"

K looked up again and held his gaze. "I'll catch them and they'll lead me to whoever is behind all this."

"And then?" Jack pressed.

"And then . . . I'll do what I do best," K finished, and Jack shifted at the dark look in her eyes as she returned her attention back to her keyboard.

He considered her 'plan'. It sounded pretty vague to him.

"Why don't you let us help you?" He suggested.

K laughed. "The Air Force is not going to help me. They believe the NID's story about me – they sent you to get me. And what did that lead to? Me taking you prisoner. Appearances aren't exactly in my favor. Sorry Colonel."

Jack sighed. She was probably right. "Worth a try," he muttered. "So why'd we switch venues?"

"The other place was too secure. I needed to hold you somewhere they can actually find."

Jack smiled. The woman was good. "You know K, after I get back and you get exonerated, you should consider going into deep space radar telemetry. I think you'd like it."

K shot him an indiscernible look. "Really."

"Yeah," Jack nodded casually. "You never know. And I guarantee, you always know why you're doing . . . whatever you'd be doing for us."

K smiled a little. "Well thank you for the invitation, Colonel. I really don't think I want to get back into the sort of work you're doing, whatever it really is, but if I ever change my mind I'll let you know."

Jack smiled, pleased that their tentative camaraderie had been restored and then some.

"You do that." He paused as K turned back to her computer before speaking up again. "So . . . got aspirin?"


End file.
